I can definitely say, I have thousands of hours’ worth of gaming logged. Ever since I received my Xbox 360 in 2014, it’s been my favorite hobby. I have played hundreds of games, some bad and others really good. Video games for me have also been a crutch for when I started at Holy Cross. I would say that I am your average student; I get good grades in my classes. At sometimes, I have gotten really stressed with both having to go to school and work, but at the end of the day, I can always put the stresses of this world behind when I play the games I enjoy for hours upon end. I have a couple of games I play at the moment.
First, a soul’s game called “Elden Ring”. This game is an RPG (Role Playing Game), you are what you call a “tarnished” and are on the brink of death where you are saved by an unknown woman. You later wake up in a cave with one goal, to become the Elden Lord. You take on various amounts of enemies and bosses on your journey, and the main story can take up to around 200+ hours to complete the game.
The next game I play is a survival game called “Grounded”. You wake up next to an enlarged brief case with 5 different cutouts for humans. Once you leave the cave you are in, you realize that the case didn’t enlarge, you actually shrank to the size of an ant. The game has a story, but the main focus is to survive in the backyard you are stuck in and try to figure out what happened to you.
Both of these games are multiplayer, so you can play with friends and increase your experience with people you know. I love being able to go home knowing I have many hours ahead of me to enjoy and forget about this world, even if it’s just for a little bit. It’s my escape.
Sophomore, Cameron Loubat explains what game gives him the most comfort to de-stress. He said, “’Stardew Valley’, because its calm and I can get to act like a farmer. I get to fish peacefully, and my melons grow well. At the moment I am in winter season and my melons can no longer grow.” Labout goes on to explain, “[Gaming] allows me to relieve stress.”
Everyone has their own way to escape reality, even if just for a few moments or for several hours. As long as we always come back to reality, gaming is a fun de-stressor.